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through simile, he shows the abandonment of defilements and the arising of the Noble Path. A Without blemish means without stain. Perfectly means very well indeed. Dye means a collection of colors like blue and yellow. Would receive means would take, would become radiant. In that very seat means in that very sitting. By this is shown his quick insight, sharp wisdom, and quick realization with pleasant practice. "Stainless" and so on, is just as said. Therein this is the comparison: The mind is like a cloth, Just as the cloth is soiled by adventitious stains, So the mind is soiled by defilements like lust. The gradual discourse is like a washing stone, Faith is like water. Just as the washing of a cloth by repeatedly wetting it with water And rubbing the stained parts with lye, cow dung, ashes, and alkalis; So is the exertion in purifying the mind By repeatedly wetting it with the oil of faith, Loosening the faults with mindfulness, concentration, and wisdom, And by the method of virtue, learning, etc. Just as the removal of stains from the cloth by that application, So is the suppression of defilements by the exertion. The Noble Path is like a dye. Just as the pure cloth becomes radiant by it, So is the purification of the mind, whose defilements are suppressed, by the Path. 27. "Horse-messenger" means a messenger on a ridden horse. "Psychic power" means a psychic act. "He performed" means he performed, he did, this is the meaning. For what purpose, if asked? For the prevention of obstacles to the special attainment to be gained by both. For if he were to see his son, Neither would the son attain Arahantship, Nor would the householder attain the Dhamma-eye. For how indeed could one who had not yet seen the truth, Begging "Give life to your mother!", Repel distraction, Send forth knowledge according to the Buddha's teaching, And attain the Dhamma-eye? And how could Yasa, thus being begged by him, Repel that distraction and be established in Arahantship? "He said this" means, Approving of the Buddha's teaching, He said these words, "Excellent, venerable sir!" and so on. And this word "abhikkanta" here is for approval; Therefore, it is said, "Excellent, excellent, venerable sir!" It happens. “In fear, in anger, in praise, In haste, in curiosity, In laughter, in sorrow, in joy, A wise one repeats a word.” It should be understood that by this very characteristic, here, it is said twice for the sake of joy and for the sake of praise. With “Just as…” and so on, he praises the Buddha’s teaching with four similes. Therein, “overturned” means placed face down, or born with face downwards. “Would set upright” means would turn face upwards. “Covered” means hidden by grass and leaves. “Would uncover” means would open. “To one bewildered” means to one who has lost his way. “Would show the path” means would take him by the hand and say, “This is the path.” “In darkness” means the darkest of the four: the fourteenth day of the dark fortnight, midnight, a dense forest, and a cloud cover. Having thus praised the teaching, making a joyful expression with a mind joyful in the Triple Gem through this teaching, he says, “From this day forth…” Therein, “From this day forth” means “I am this.” “May the Blessed One remember me as a lay follower” means may the Blessed One remember me, know me, as “this is a lay follower.” “From this day forth” – here the word “forth” (agga) is in the sense of “beginning.” Therefore, “from this day forth” should be understood as “making today the beginning.” “Today” means the present state. Or the reading is “ajjadagge,” where the ‘d’ is a connective for the word, meaning “making today the beginning.” “Endowed with life” means endowed with living beings. “As long as my life continues, may the Blessed One remember me, know me, as a lay follower, a doer of what is proper, who has gone for refuge with the three refuges, having no other teacher.” For even if someone were to cut off my head with a sharp sword, I would never say of the Buddha, “He is not the Buddha,” or of the Dhamma, “It is not the Dhamma,” or of the Sangha, “They are not the Sangha.” Thus, he went for refuge by dedicating himself. In this way, the meaning of the unstated words like “Excellent!” should be understood. The detailed explanation, however, has already appeared in the commentary on the Verañja section, so it is not given here. 28. “To one reflecting on the ground” means to one reflecting on what he has seen. “He calmed the volitional formation of psychic power.” Thus, as that rich householder, sitting there, saw Yasa, the noble son, so he resolved, is the meaning. "May he consent" means may he accept. "For today" means that which will be for me today, making offerings to you, merit and joy and delight, for that purpose. "The Blessed One consented with silence" means the Blessed One, without moving any part of his body or speech, inwardly making patience, consented with silence, meaning he accepted mentally for the householder's benefit. "Come, monk!" the Blessed One said, means indeed, looking at the origin of his miraculous bowl and robe, seeing his giving of robes and other eight requisites in many births, he said, "Come, monk!" He, at that very moment, shaven-headed, clad in saffron robes, with the eight requisites of a monk as if attached to his body, sat down, just like a sixty-year-old elder, bowing to the Blessed One. Indeed, whoever gives the eight requisites, such as robes, or just a bowl and robe, to a noble one like a stream-enterer, or even to an ordinary person endowed with virtue, and makes the aspiration, "May this gift of requisites be a condition for attaining the state of 'Come, monk!' in the future," it should be understood that this leads to the attainment of miraculous requisites in the presence of Buddhas, provided there is sufficient merit. 29. "With excellent food" means with the best. "With his own hand" means with his own hand. "Having satisfied" means having well satisfied, having made them full, content, and to their heart's desire. "Having invited to desist" means having well invited to desist, having made them refuse with a hand gesture, saying "Enough, enough!" "Having eaten" means one who has eaten. "With hand removed from the bowl" means hand removed from the bowl, meaning hand withdrawn. "With bowl separated from hand" is also a reading, its meaning is – "onitta" means separated, distinct, the bowl is separated from the hand, hence "onittapattapāṇi", that "onittapattapāṇi", meaning having washed hands and bowl, and having put the bowl aside, they sat down. "They sat down to one side" means knowing the Blessed One to be such, they sat down in one place. is the meaning. In phrases like "with a discourse on Dhamma," having shown the meaning of this world and the next, with a discourse on Dhamma suitable for that moment, and having established him in wholesome states, and having encouraged him therein, and having made him zealous, and having delighted him with that zeal and with other existing qualities, and having rained down a shower of the Dhamma jewel, he rose from his seat and departed. The description of Yasa's ordination story is finished. Description of the ordination story of the four householder friends 30. Now, showing the ordination of his friends, it is said, "Then they heard," and so on. Here is the explanation of the not-obvious words: "Of the chief and sub-chief families" means the families to which those chief and sub-chiefs belonged, the families of chief and sub-chiefs, meaning families endowed with chiefs and sub-chiefs who had come down through tradition. "Vimala" and so on are the names of their sons. "Having shaved off hair and beard" means having removed hair and beard. "Saffron robes" means robes dyed with astringent juice, suitable for those practicing the holy life. "Inferior" means lesser, mean. The rest here is as explained before. The description of the ordination story of the four householder friends is finished. Description of the ordination story of the fifty householder friends 31. What needs to be said about the ordination of the fifty householder friends has already been said. However, the past karma of all these must be told. To show that, it is said, "This is the past karma of Yasa and the other young men of good family," and so on. There, "by forming a group" means by forming a company, it is said that they were united. "Helpless bodies" means helpless corpses. "Attending to" means carrying them out and burning them. The description of the ordination story of the fifty householder friends is finished. Description of the Māra story 32. Now, to show the going for refuge ordination, "Then the Blessed One," and so on, is begun. Here is the explanation of the words in order: "I am freed" means I am liberated. "Wandering" means a journey of gradual wandering, a journey in succession through villages, towns, and capital cities. The meaning is: “You have wandered.” “Wander” means: Wander, going a maximum of a league a day. “Let not two go by one way” means: When two have gone by one way, and one is teaching the Dhamma, the other should remain silent. Therefore, it is said thus. “Good in the beginning” means: Good, beautiful, excellent in the beginning, and likewise in the middle and at the end. This “beginning, middle, and end” is of two kinds, according to the teaching and according to the discourse. Therein, for the teaching, virtue is the beginning, calm and insight, and the paths are the middle, the fruits and Nibbāna are the end. Or, virtue and concentration are the beginning, insight and the paths are the middle, the fruits and Nibbāna are the end. Or, virtue, concentration, and insight are the beginning, the path is the middle, the fruits and Nibbāna are the end. For a discourse, however, for a four-lined stanza, the first line is the beginning, the second and third are the middle, the fourth is the end.